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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: prune · last · bass · charge · pitch · press · mate · bat

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. last — to go on
  3. bass — the fish
  4. press — to push
  5. prune — to trim
  6. charge — in control
  7. bat — the animal
  8. charge — a price
  9. press — a publisher
  10. charge — electricity
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. mate — a partner
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. mate — to breed
  17. press — newspapers
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. last — final
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bass — low music
  22. last — finally
  23. mate — a friend
  24. pitch — completely

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com